Controversial Brisbane Broncos forward Matt Lodge will have his contract torn up by the NRL unless he comes up with a payment plan to pay back the victims of his New York rampage.
The NRL ignited outrage from many after they allowed the much-publicised Lodge to return to the game this season, with plenty believing his return has damaged the game.
After much public backlash, the NRL is now demanding Lodge pay back the $1.6 million in damages from his US rampage in 2015.
Compensating the victims will now be Lodge's priority, with a payment plan to be set out by the NRL.
It won't come without its difficulties though, Lodge is on a minimum wage of $100,000 and his value needs to increase if he were to fast-track the costs.
"The victims can't get compensation if he's not working," ARL chairman Peter Beattie said.
"I've read all of it, I've seen his denials. All of this was years ago, all of this was taken into account when this evaluation was being made.
"[NRL chief executive] Todd [Greenberg] has made the right decision because we're giving him another chance. If he simply gets thrown on the scrapheap, he will never pay compensation back to that family. At the end of it all, we expect him to do that.
"This could have been explained a lot better than it has been. What he did, what programs he went through should have been explained a lot better.
"In future ... we will set in place much better communication strategy. This was never going to be a popular decision."
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